'Thankful': New Arizona Attorney General Mayes responds after recount affirms win

Corrections & Clarifications: Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Timothy Thomason's last name was incorrect in a previous version of the article.

In a race with more than 2.5 million voters, the winning margin was only 280 votes. And the winner, Democrat Kris Mayes, says she is thankful.

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Timothy Thomason on Thursday declared Mayes the winner of Arizona's attorney general race, more than six weeks after the Nov. 8 election.

Mayes' lead over Republican Abe Hamadeh dwindled to 280 votes after the recount, down from 511 votes. The 231-vote change nearly halved her lead.

"Our race was once again a reminder that every vote matters in our state and that democracy is truly a team sport," Mayes said Thursday afternoon at a news conference in which she addressed the closeness of the race and the recount.

"What I am told is that when you look at an election like this where 2.5 million people voted, a ... variance of a couple hundred votes actually isn't that extraordinary, especially with an election this large and with this many people," Mayes said. "At the end of the day, the statutory recount occurred. We have faith in that. We always had faith in our elections."

It was one of the closest statewide races in Arizona history. The final vote count was 1,254,809 votes for Mayes and 1,254,529 for Hamadeh.

The race went to an automatic recount after the election, per state law, as the vote differential between Mayes and Republican Abe Hamadeh was within half a percentage point. The recount was conducted in election departments in Arizona's 15 counties in December.

Mayes criticized Hamadeh for his multiple election challenges, saying that they were "aimed at sowing doubt in the public's mind in our elections system."

Mayes also condemned the Republican Party for undermining election results in Arizona and said that one of her responsibilities as attorney general is to get people to have more confidence in the state's voting system.

"One of the jobs that I will have as attorney general is to try to restore some of that trust in our elections system amongst all Arizonans. Whether you're a Republican, or a Democrat or an independent, I want all Arizonans to know that I am going to work for you, and you will have a voice inside the Attorney General's Office," she said.

Mayes also discussed some of her policy objectives as attorney general, which include setting up a reproductive rights unit in the office, filling vacancies in the office's child and family protection division, water conservation, fighting elder abuse and fentanyl overdoses.

"We are ... bringing this office back to its core mission, which is protecting our most vulnerable Arizonans and working in the public's best interest," she said.

Mayes will make history as Arizona's first openly gay attorney general and first attorney general who is also a mom. She is the state's second female attorney general behind Janet Napolitano, who served from 1999-2003. Before this race, she served in the Corporation Commission as a Republican for seven years.

She said in a written statement after the court hearing: "I will say once again that I’m thankful to everyone who took their time to vote, and democracy is truly a team sport. I’m thankful for my campaign, transition and legal teams. I’m excited and ready to get to work as your next Attorney General and vow to be your Lawyer for the People. Onward…"

Hamadeh said he is exploring possible legal challenges after the recount decision. He said on Twitter: "Every day that goes by my opponent’s lead has been shrinking. This recount has an unusually high discrepancy rate and swing. This is all without a complete inspection of the ballots. My opponent gained 196 votes, I gained 427. The outcome of this election is uncertain."

Tara Kavaler is a politics reporter at The Arizona Republic. She can be reached by email at tara.kavaler@arizonarepublic.com or on Twitter @kavalertara.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: New Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes responds after recount